10-4 Magazine November 2021

Jepsen’s at the age of 15, and star ted washing trucks on the side, as well. One of the trucks he would wash was a sweet 1972 Peterbilt transfer owned by Les Johnson. After he finished washing it, Jeff would deliver the rig to Les in person, even though he did not have a license yet. At 17 years old, and still with no license, Jeff star ted driving a 1957 Kenwor th for Rob Hilarides (this truck was featured on our December 2008 cover) hauling tomatoes. After spilling tomato juice all over the freeway, Jeff had to take a month off of trucking until he could turn 18 and get his license. After that, he went right back to driving for Rob. In 1976, wanting to get out of Los Angeles, the Hulstein family moved to Klamath Falls, OR. For a shor t time, Gerrit, Jeff, and his brother Gary all star ted hauling cattle together, but that did not last long. Jeff didn’t like hauling cattle because he couldn’t keep his truck clean, so he bought a new 1977 Freightliner cabover and star ted pulling reefer trailers for Bud Trogdon up and down Interstate 5, living the dream, on that super slab between Seattle and Los Angeles. A year later, grandpa Gerrit bought a brand-new 1978 Freightliner cabover truck and trailer, but the following year (1979) he got into a terrible wreck and almost died. The truck was totaled, and grandpa Gerrit never really drove full-time ever again. From there, everyone in the family kind of went their separate ways. Later that year, Jeff bought a brand-new 1979 Peterbilt 359 glider kit and fitted it with the drivetrain out of his dad’s wrecked truck, then sold his 1977 cabover to his brother Gary, who conver ted it into a car hauler, and then star ted moving cars. Jeff used his 359 to pull reefer trailers for several years and then switched to tankers, running all over the Pacific Nor thwest and California. On one of his trips to California, through his friend Walt Armas, Jeff met Chris, who worked at the fuel desk at a truck stop in Redding, CA. The two hit it off and ended up getting married in 1987, then moved to their new home in Terrebonne, OR. After moving to central Oregon, Gus was born the following year. And you thought we forgot about Gus! Born in 1988 in Redmond, OR, Gus (who’s actual name is Gerrit like his grandfather) grew up surrounded by trucks and trucking – and he loved it! When Gus about three years old, his dad Jeff sold his 359 Peterbilt and star ted driving for other people, running locally. Throughout most of his years in school, Gus’ dad drove a transfer, and Gus would ride with him every chance he could. Always a hard worker, Gus had several jobs while still in high school, including bucking hay, milking cows, farming, and working on irrigation. Basically, he took any job that afforded him the oppor tunity to drive a truck or a tractor. Gus hated school and couldn’t wait to get out of there and go trucking. The day Gus turned 18 years old in 2006 was the day he took the test for his CDL – in a 10-4 Magazine / November 2021 11 complete A-model Kenwor th transfer unit! The guy giving him the test was blown away at Gus’ skills, and he passed the test with ease. Gus immediately got a job driving a 1985 Mack Superliner transfer after just one round of training (apparently, his dad had taught him well). Running a lot with his dad, they were paving, stockpiling material, and spreading rock, and Gus was loving it. Unfor tunately, that was about the time our economy star ted to crash, and the construction industry tanked. Looking for work, Gus got a job hauling maxi loads of hay with a set of 40-foot and 24-foot doubles. With a drom on the back of the truck, these loads of big blocks were around 105,000 pounds, and Gus was running over every snowy pass Oregon had to offer. Throwing chains on a regular basis, at just 19 years old, Gus learned a lot. He did this for about a year, then did a shor t stint of transfer driving for Knife River, before getting laid off again in 2009. Around this same time, Gus got married, too. Having met his wife Natalie in high school, the two were just friends. He never even thought about being with her, because, in his eyes, she was out of his league. But not long after high school, the two got together and really hit it off. They got married in 2009, and the two couldn’t be happier. So, when Gus got laid off and work was scarce, the two of them moved to Albany, OR and Gus star ted driving for George Van Dyke